Dear staff,
There’s certainly been a distinct pick-up in momentum across UQ over the past fortnight, but there will be far more activity across our campuses over the coming fortnight as we welcome thousands of students for the start of the new academic year.
Next Monday will mark the beginning of 2 weeks of orientation activities – with O-Week being held from 12–16 February, followed by Connect Week from 19–23 February. There’s a rich program of orientation activities planned across our St Lucia, Gatton and Herston campuses to welcome students, help them get settled into UQ life, and make new connections on campus.
Australia Day Awards
On a personal note, I felt deeply honoured and humbled to be named as a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) in the Australia Day Honours list. Thank you to the many people from across our community who have sent me congratulatory messages.
It was particularly gratifying to receive this award alongside a number of my highly regarded UQ colleagues. I would like to convey my congratulations to Professor Lorraine Mazerolle, who was also awarded an AC for her eminent service to education, to the social sciences, and to the development of policing reforms.
Other well-known members of the UQ community who received Order of Australia honours in late January, include Jeff Maclean AM (Chair of the QBI Advisory Board), Professor Bruce Abernethy AM, Professor Gail Garvey AM, Honorary Professor Vicki Flenady AM, Professor Carmel Hawley AM, Associate Professor David Thomson AM, Professor Paul Harpur OAM, and Professor Cliff Mallett OAM.
As a measure of the widespread impact and positive influence of our university, a complete list of UQ people who received Order of Australia awards is simply too long to include here. However, this UQ News article provides a great summary of the UQ community members who received honours.
Leadership Development Programs
We are currently taking expressions of interest from staff who would like to participate in one of UQ’s targeted Leadership Development Programs.
The suite of programs on offer in 2024 include ‘Learning to Lead’, ‘Leadership in Practice’, and ‘Leading UQ’. These programs, which have been developed by our HR Organisational Culture and Capability team, proved to be a really valuable vehicle for staff development last year.
Staff who are interested, can apply via the online Expression of Interest (EOI) form. Both the EOI form and your manager’s endorsement need to be submitted by Monday 19 February at 5pm to be considered for one of the programs.
Vale Margaret Valadian AO MBE
In sad news for our community, the first Indigenous Australian to graduate from UQ, Margaret Valadian AO MBE, passed away in the days just prior to Christmas.
When she attained her Bachelor of Social Sciences from UQ in 1966, Margaret was the first acknowledged Aboriginal woman to complete a university degree anywhere in Australia. Interestingly, in that same year, Charles Perkins matched Margaret’s pioneering achievement by graduating from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Arts.
After graduating from UQ, Margaret became an educator and an advocate for Indigenous rights and education. She was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1986 “for service to the community, particularly in the field of Aboriginal education and culture”.
Margaret will be sadly missed by many, but her achievements and broad impact will be long remembered.
And finally…
As I mentioned, it’s sure to be a much livelier scene around campus next week as students arrive for O-Week. As always, I’d urge all staff to particularly look for opportunities to help new students, so they gain that early sense of being welcomed and included in the UQ community.
I hope you have a great weekend.
With best wishes
Debbie
